Rocco Staino

Edgar Awards Also Has Books for Kids (Video)

2013-05-13T12:05:22-04:00

Each year over 500 writers and lovers of mysteries gather in New York City for a black-tie evening to celebrate the winners of the Edgar Awards presented by the Mystery Writers of America. However, few lovers of children and young adult books realize that the awards also honors authors in those fields.

This year children's mysterious writer, Jack D. Ferraiolo, won for The Quick Fix, a sequel to his The Big Splash which was nominated for the 2009 Edgar. He beat out Three Times Lucky by Sheila Turnage which this year was named a Newbery Honor. He was nominated with fellow Abrams author Tom Angleberger who had the book with the longest title of the evening, Fake Mustache: Or, How Jodie O'Rodeo and Her Wonder Horse (and Some Nerdy Kid) Saved the U.S. Presidential Election from a Mad Genius Criminal Mastermind. Angleberger was also nominated in 2012 for Horton Halfpott (Abrams). The award was presented by R.L. Stine who is well known as "the Stephen King of Children's Literature".

Code Name Verity (Hyperion) was the winner in the Young Adult category. This thriller by Elizabeth Wein is set in World War II. The book has also been named a Michael L. Printz Honor Book and was a shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal both are awarded by the American Library Association.

Robert Forbes, the Poet, Celebrates National Poetry Month in Style

2013-04-23T22:59:56-04:00

Malcom was a collector, Steve is political but Bob Forbes is the poet of the family. When Robert L. Forbes, one of Malcom Forbes' five children, is not busy as president of Forbes Life he has another life as a poet. He is the author of of three books of rhyme featuring food- and love-themed poems which are humorously illustrated by Ronald Searle. Searle died in December 2011 but left a trove of illustrations. Each picture has a mouse which young readers delight in locating. The latest Beast Friends Forever! Animal Lovers in Rhyme has been well received by both teachers and librarians. Kirkus Reviews said that it was a "curiously wayward collection of animal love poetry" and Publishers Weekly said it was a "gently mischievous poems should please those who love wordplay, the animal kingdom, and improbable romances".

Since embarking on this new venture, Bob dons colorful outfits for visit to schools, libraries and book festival reading his poems to children. For World Read Aloud Day he dressed as a farmer and during National Poetry Month he visited the New York Historical Society wearing red pants and posed beside Abe Lincoln.

Here is a Forbes poem to end Poetry Month:

Groovy Doobie

I know a Blue-footed Booby,

A goofy young punster named Doobie

Who Dyed his Feet to be groovy

And at night plays blues on his toobie

Which is brassy and loud

For the teenybooby crowd,

So when he toodles by,

The girls all cry,

"Let me be your baby Booby, groovy Doobie!"

Celebrate Jackie Robinson With a Book

2013-04-03T16:47:30-04:00

What better way to celebrate the opening of Major League Baseball's 2013 season, the release of bioepic film 42 and Jackie Robinson Day than reading a book with a kid. Below are some recommendations:

The film 42 will open on April 12. Set in 1946, Branch Rickey (Harrison Ford) put himself at the forefront of history when he signed Jackie Robinson (Chadwick Boseman) to the team, breaking Major League Baseball's infamous color line. Three days later on April 15 Major League Baseball celebrates Jackie Robinson Day, a day to recognize his legacy when all uniformed players are asked to wear Robinson's number 42.

10 Passover Books for Kids

2013-03-13T14:29:51-04:00

This collection of Passover literature for children ranges from a serious story of how Jews in hiding during the war celebrated to a humorous tale of a robot that helps with the ritual cleaning. There most certainly should be a book here you can share with your favorite child during Passover.

David Baldacci Introduces Kids to America's Attic

2013-03-11T17:15:26-04:00

As part of the kick-off for his new book Day of Doom (Scholastic), New York Times best selling author, David Baldacci introduced kids to the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History via a virtual field trip. The "Decoding History" virtual field trip.

In Baldacci's book, the latest in Scholastic's The 39 Clues: Cahills vs. Vespers series, features a museum curator as its main character and an item from the museum. The Lewis and Clark compass, plays a role in the story. The curator is based on the real life Nancy Gwinn, Director of the Smithsonian Institution's libraries.

In addition viewers get a behind the scenes look at Abraham Lincoln's pocket watch and the Star-Spangled Banner. It is interesting to note that this very same pocket watch has been in the news recently due to it being featured in the film Lincoln. During the field trip, kids find out about the secret messages hidden inside the watch. When asked about his favorite item at the Smithsonian, Baldacci described how a curator showed him a gilded pole on which hung the the flag that General Cornwallis surrended at Yorktown. To his amazement he discovered that only 10 to 15 percent of the collection is actually on displayed and this item was stored away in a draw.

The 39 Clues series is multi-platformed. It combined books, collectible cards, and an online game. Book 6: Day of Doom by Baldacci is the concluding installment in The 39 Clues Cahills vs. Vespers series and was released on March 5, 2013. When asked about the possibility of a multi-platform book for one of his adult tiles, Baldacci answers below:

Vassar Students Rally in Protest Against Westboro Baptist Church

2013-03-01T20:21:36-05:00

Students at Vassar College, a small, liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., came out in force Thursday afternoon to protest a visit from members of the Westboro Baptist Church. Vassar, or as the Kansas-based church calls it, the "Ivy League Whorehouse," has become a Westboro target because the church believes that the school promotes "the fag agenda." The church's website explains, "God Hates Vassar College for following the satanic Zeitgeist by professing the soul-damning lie that it is 'OK to be gay.'"

More than 500 student and community protesters rallied to meet the church protesters, of whom there were just four. The church members, looking like refugees from the Philadelphia Mummers Parade, were kept away from the students by the Poughkeepsie police, who had to shut down the four-lane road in front of the college. They danced around waving anti-gay signs while the students chanted slogans and formed a human love chain.

The protest was part of the church's Hudson Valley road trip. Earlier in the day they were scheduled to protest the funeral of Army General H. Norman Schwarzkopf at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y. The church claims that "soldiers are fighting for the right of fags to marry -- the same sin for which the Lord destroyed the world with a great flood."

The Vassar students used the church's appearance as an opportunity to raise funds for the Trevor Project, an organization that provides crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) youth. To date, they have raised over $100,000 for the organization.

10 picks From Toy Fair That Parents Will Enjoy (Sharing with their Kids)

2013-02-25T18:32:43-05:00

The 110th Annual Toy Fair was recently held in New York City. It was filled with many familiar toys from my childhood as well as a host of innovative items that one could not have imagined 10 or 20 years ago. I wanted to share some old and new items with you that will enhance playtime with your kids.

Here my 10 picks from Toy Fair that parents will enjoy even after the kids have gone to bed.

Children Authors & Illustrators Help Bring Normalcy to Sandy Hook Elementary School

2013-02-19T19:01:10-05:00

Authors/illustrators visitors to Sandy Hook Elementary School. Back Row: Alan Katz, Bruce Degen, Tad Hills, Katie Davis, Vincent Kirsch, Bob Shea, Meghan McCarthy. Front Row: Susan Hood, Mike Rex, Tracy Dockray, Marc Tyler Nobleman, Daniel Kirk.

Twelve children's authors and illustrators traveled to the Sandy Hook Elementary School to participate in the school's first assembly program. This came about through the diligent effort of Marc Tyler Nobleman, author of more than 70 books, including Bill the Boy Wonder: The Secret Co-Creator of Batman. After many fits and starts and almost two month after the December 14th shooting at the school that killed 26 children and staff, the group presented a variety program that had music, song, videos, poems and drawing demonstrations.

The rapt attentions and smiling faces of the children was proof that normalcy is returning to the school, which was exactly the point of the assembly. During the planning process Nobleman wrote to the organizers, "Our mission is to come and reinforce the challenging and critical work you are all doing everyday and late into the night; we don't want to disrupt momentum but rather support it. We want to be part of the healing."

Parents Work to Create a School In Memory of Maurice Sendak

2013-02-12T18:29:25-05:00

Due to the efforts of a group of Brooklyn parents, when PS 118 in Brooklyn opens next September, it will welcome students to a school named in honor of Maurice Sendak. The parents rallied to work with the school administration and the New York City Department of Education to achieve this honor for Sendak, the famed creator of over 100 books who died on May 7, 2013. The announcement comes days after the February 5 release of Sendak's last book, My Brother's Book (HarperCollins, 2013).

The school will be housed in the former St. Thomas Aquinas School in the Park Slope section of Brooklyn and will initially serve 86 Kindergarteners and Pre-K students. The school was created to solve overcrowding at the nearby PS 321 and will eventual serves grades Pre-K through fifth grade.

A group of families who had met during the rezoning discussions decided to focus their efforts to start that new school off to be as successful as possible. They call themselves PS 118 Founding Families and they as a group wanted a great name for their school.

Through a series of email exchanges, the name of Maurice Sendak arose and when the full group of parents met in December, support for the name proposal was unanimous. "It's a testament to Sendak's influence and appeal that there was complete agreement," said Debra Wexler, a member of the group and a parent of a 4-year old daughter. "We all thought that honoring his legacy in this way would create an incredibly welcoming and warm foundation for the school."

In working with the school's principal, Elizabeth Garraway, the name "P.S. 118: The Maurice Sendak Community School" was chosen. They petitioned the New York City Department of Education for the name citing that "Sendak was best known for turning the stereotypical picture book character on its head." After clearing the way with Sendak's estate and working with the City Councilmember, Brad Lander, the process received approval from the Department of Education fairly quickly.

The parent group is continuing to reach out to the Sendak estate to see if they can get permission to use his artwork in the school. "We hope that his work will infuse the school with a joyful atmosphere and spark creativity in our children every day," Wexler told the Huffington Post. They also hope to attract the many children's author and illustrators who live in the neighbor and who find Sendak to be an inspiration. "We hope they will find a home at our school and become part of our community."

This will not be the first school in the United States to be named for the author. In 2005, North Hollywood, CA named an elementary school for Sendak. When this Maurice Sendak School opens it will offer a multicultural curriculum that will prepare children to be flexible and creative thinkers capable of succeeding in a diverse world and that the memory of Sendak will inspire the children as they learn and grow, as their minds open to the world all around.

NYC to Name School in Honor of Maurice Sendak

2013-02-11T12:29:24-05:00

Maurice Sendak, the famed children's book author and illustrator, who passed away on May 7th will be memorialized with a public school named in his honor. On February 8th, PS118 in Park Slope Brooklyn announced on their parents website that their school will be named for the Caldecott Medal winning creator of Where the Wild Things Are. "My 4.5 year old daughter is a little anxious about transitioning to kindergarten, but when I told her the news about the name she immediately was excited about it," said Debra Wexler, a parent of a future PS118 Kindergartener. "It's so great that the school will be named for someone that even the youngest students know and love."

PS 118 scheduled to open in September 2013 in the former St. Thomas Aquinas will house two kindergarten classes, accommodating up to 50 children in total, and two Pre-K classes, accommodating up to 36 children in total. Eventually it will serve up to fifth grade. It already has an active parent group that was formed in December called PS 118 Founding Families that is working to raise funds for a playground and garden.

This isn't the first school named for Sendak. In 2005 a new elementary school in North Hollywood was named after the author.

NCAC Auction Off Edgy Book Covers

2012-11-26T18:00:53-05:00

As part of its annual fundraising event, Celebration of Free Speech and Its Defenders, the National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC) auctioned off a few mythical book covers that would be sure to raise some eyebrows. Award-winning book illustrators created covers for books with such provocative titles as Blow Me, Holiday Hummers: A Burst of Christmas Cheer and Tommy's Pussy Wagon . The auction raised several thousand dollars for the organization, a coalition of 50 organizations that joins together to protect First Amendment rights.

The event honored authors Ellen Hopkins and Phyllis Reynolds Naylor and Chris Finan, president of the American Booksellers Foundation. It was hosted by author and first National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, Jon Scieszka.

Ten Books to Celebrate Julia Child's 100th Birthday (SLIDESHOW)

2012-08-09T12:23:42-04:00

Gourmets and gourmands are pulling their ten Julia Child's cookbooks off the shelves to help celebrate the culinary icon's 100 birthday on August 15th. But foodies, lovers of pop culture and kids will also find a book to help celebrate Julia's birthday.

In 1961, Child introduced America to French cooking with her Mastering the Art of French Cooking and went on to become pop celebrity when her PBS series The French Chef. The following books will give you an insight into the woman, cook and wife.

You also may enjoy these Julia Child video clips on the Huffington Post.

South African Shantytown Opera Singer Takes NYC by Storm (Video)

2012-04-06T14:31:50-04:00

Mteto Maphoyi (Mthetho Mapoyi), a kid from a small Xhosa township in South Africa's Western Cape and a subject of the 2011 documentary, The Creators, was recently given a Big Apple welcome. The film tells the stories of various artists who struggle with the affects of living in post apartheid South Africa.

When Mteto's father abandoned the family he left behind one Pavarotti CD. According to TEDxTeen:

As a child, Mteto played his Pavarotti CD one phrase at a time, sounding out the Italian lyrics to teach himself to sing "Santa Lucia" and "'O Sole Mio." Soon Mteto and his friends formed the Six Tenors, a group of six teenagers who sang opera on the streets to support their families in a shantytown with over 40% unemployment.

After his mother's death from HIV/AIDS:

Mteto fell into a pattern of crime... enduring multiple stabbings and a burning in gang wars and chance fights. Now a 22-year-old with a knife scar stretching the length of his cheek, Mteto has used opera to pull himself out of the cycle of gang life. He is now receiving formal training at South Africa's prestigious Black Tie Ensemble at the State Theatre, Pretoria.

Things began to change even more for Mteto after the New York City premier of The Creators in November. Cecilia Lewis, a photographer, who attended the screening and spoke with the filmmaker, Laura Gamse, decided to become Mteto's advocate and patron.

She brought his story to the attention of Jess Teutonico, the TEDx Teen curator at the We Are Family Foundation. Styled upon the popular TED Talks, TEDx Teen is an independently organized event where the focus is upon teens and their ability to change the world. With Lewis as his sponsor, Mteto was brought from South Africa to speak at the recent TEDx Teen conference held in New York City at the Scholastic (publisher) headquarters. There he inspired the 300 teens present and the 5000 who were viewing it online with his story of abandonment, violence and how music and opera changed his life.

Word of Mteto's talent spread from SoHo to midtown Manhattan where Leopoldo Mucci, who the Wall Street Journal calls "the missionary of opera," runs a weekly opera salon. It is called Caffe Taci and is held at Papillon Bistro each Friday and Saturday evening. He invited the 22-year-old to come that evening to perform. And so he did where he was received with open arms. "Everyone loves him," exclaimed Mucci after Mteto's performance, marking his New York City "debut" as an opera singer. In the audience was Roy Innis, the National Chairman of CORE, who expressed an interest in Mteto's singing. Before his return to his studies in Pretoria and his dream of becoming a professional opera singer, his whirlwind visit ended with a behind the scenes tour of the Metropolitan Opera.

On April 14th the film The Creators will be featured as part of the New York African Film Festival at the Film Society of Lincoln Center with Laura Gamse, the filmmaker attending.

Ice Age to Digital Age at The Society of Illustrators (VIDEO)

2012-03-23T14:54:36-04:00

(Digital production still of Scrat and Scratte from Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs. TM & ©2009 Twentieth Century Fox Films Corporation. All rights reserved)

The Society of Illustrators which houses the Museum of American Illustration was recently named one of the five Hidden Gems in New York City by the New York Times Frugal Traveler Seth Kugel. I recently stopped at the society to check out its current exhibit, Ice Age to the Digital Age: The 3D Animation Art of Computer Animation. From now until May 5 visitors can get an inside look at the creative work of Blue Sky Studio, the creators of such films as the Ice Age series, Robots and Rio.

This free exhibit will take you through the entire process of creating computer animated films: from initial concepts, storyboards, characters and background art, to 3D and digital modeling. The exhibition features rarely seen original concept drawings, character illustrations, storyboards, background paintings, sculptural models, props and digital stills. During my visit I was able to meet with illustrator Peter deSeve, the lead character designer for the Ice Age series, and asked if he had a particular favorite character. Surprisingly, it wasn't Scrat but Sid, the Sloth, whose voice is portrayed in the film by John Leguizamo. When you begin the process "you can't predict what you get at the end. I was surprised with the character to the very end." Sid will reappear in the fourth installment of the Ice Age series, Continental Drift to be released this summer.

The Society of Illustrators is at 128 East 63rd Street, New York, NY 10065.

Wimpy Kid's Love is in the Air Will Be a Global Affair

2012-03-22T11:17:32-04:00

The release of the seventh volume in Jeff Kinney's Wimpy Kid Series Love is in the Air will definitely be a global event when it is released in November. While at the Bologna Children's Book Fair Kenney announced that following the Nov. 13 U.S. release by his American publisher, Amulet, publishers in The United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, Greece, Japan, Korea, and Norway will release the book in their respective territories the day after.

"Never in my wildest dreams did I think that Greg Heffley's stories would be enjoyed by kids around the world," said Kinney. "I'm incredibly excited to have the chance to lay down the seventh Diary of a Wimpy Kid book in seven countries at the same time. My international publishers have been supportive of the series from the very start, and it's great to be able to team up with them and create a special moment like this."

In North America, there are more than 60 million Diary of a Wimpy Kid books in print. The series is a fixture on the USA Today bestseller list (the first book in the series has remained in the top 150 for more than 200 weeks) and also on the Wall Street Journal and Publishers Weekly bestseller lists. It has remained consistently in the top spots on the New York Times lists since the publication of the first book in 2007. In 2009, Jeff Kinney was named one of the "Time 100," TIME magazine's annual list of the most influential people in the world.

Internationally, the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series has hit bestseller lists in Germany, the U.K., Australia, Norway, Israel, the Netherlands, and Italy. Recognized by several major awards in Europe and abroad and the Diary most recently won the Blue Peter award in the U.K. for the best children's book of the last decade.